Mali: 12 killed in 'terrorist ambush'

Eleven jihadists were killed Sunday in central Mali, in an ambush by Islamist fighters linked to the Malian army, the defense ministry said.

One soldier was also killed in the attack. He was part of a reconnaissance and security patrol, a statement from the Malian Ministry of Defence said.

The “attackers proceeded to summarily execute more than 20 people including elderly people and at the same time some members of the security post of the coalition”, the statement said.

In a separate incident on Friday, “armed men” attacked the village of Tindinbawen, near the border with Niger, according to a joint statement from the Imghad and Allies Tuareg Self-Defence Force (Gatia) and the Movement for the Salvation of Azawad (MSA).

The two mainly Tuareg groups support the French and Malian forces.

Mali’s unrest follows ethnic Touareg separatist uprising in 2002, which was exploited by jihadists in order to control key cities in the north.

The extremists were largely driven out in a French-led military operation launched in January 2013.

But large stretches of the country remain outside of the control of the foreign and Malian forces, which are frequent targets of attacks, despite a peace accord signed with Tuareg leaders in 2015 aimed at isolating the jihadists.

The violence has also spilled over into both Burkina Faso and Niger.

These incidents are reported as the first round of the presidential election in Mali is scheduled to take place on 29 July. President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta is seeking a second term.

AFP